Pumping apparatus



Nov. 9, 1954 Y E. F. MILLER PUMPING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 29, 1951 r M h H .Y m M v R VF .O m m w J n A b m 85 V 535 D EB b 5 7 2 2 m o 9 Z l l 2 m 7 A. um w m 2 v m 3 a E o v 3 2 3 l 'M VJ I .II. a (J .w VP ,4 flu" V .3 2 3 \l -fi 6 3 I 4.\

WITNESSES:

United States Patent PUMPING APPARATUS Ernest F. Miller, Lansdowne, Pa., assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application November 29, 1951, Serial No. 258,778

4 Claims. (Cl. 103 102) This invention relates to pumping equipment, and more particularly to casing structure for a condensate pump of the pit type.

In condensate pumps of the pit type wherein the pumping elements are located well below the suction opening to ensure submergence, it has been proposed to construct and arrange the working parts in such a manner as to facilitate removal thereof without necessitating separation of the pump casing from the fluid pipe lines. One typical design of condensate pump incorporates a member having inner and outer sealing surfaces which, though spaced apart in the direction of the axis of the pump casing, must be simultaneously and accurately engageable with complementary sealing surfaces formed on a separate casing section. In order to ensure the desired cooperation of the casing members having such sealing surfaces, extreme accuracy in manufacture has been required, involving concomitant machining problems and expense.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved pump apparatus comprising casing structure which is adapted to obviate the above difliculty.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved pump casing structure having sealing surfaces arranged in the same plane so that they may be more readily machined to the required tolerances, without entailing use of inconvenient or costly machining techmques. It is a further object to provide a pump construction in which the centerlines of the suction and discharge openings may be disposed at the same elevation, rendering feasible a neat piping circuit and reduction in the overall height of the apparatus.

These and other objects are effected by the invention as will be apparent from the following description and claims taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, in which:

The single figure is an elevational sectional view of a condensate pump apparatus constructed in accordance with the invention.

The pump apparatus shown in the drawing is equipped with an elongated outer casing structure comprising a vertical pump well section having a chamber 11, a substantially annular conduit section 12 mounted thereon, and an interior pump assembly, indicated generally by the reference character 13, which is removably mounted coaxially within the chamber 11 of the well section. The well section 10 has an upper annular flange 15, which may rest on suitable support structure 16, and is adapted to be bolted to an annular flange 17 carried on the lower portion of the conduit section 12. The latter includes a laterally disposed pipe connection portion 18 forming an inlet passage 19, and a similarly arranged pipe connection portion 20 forming an outlet passage 21, the center lines of the said passages being preferably at the same elevation. The inlet passage 19 communicates with the chamber 11, and is separated from the outlet passage 21 by the interior wall 12a of the conduit section. Formed on the conduit section 12 above the pipe connection portions 18 and 20 is an annular flange 24 having an upwardly facing sealing surface 25, in which is formed an annular recess 26 communicating with the outlet passage 21. This recess 26 divides the sealing surface 25 into concentric inner and outer portions disposed in the same plane, as indicated at 25a and 25b.

The vertically arranged pump assembly 13 comprises an upper casing section 27, an intermediate section 28, and a number of pump stages 29 including suitable impellers having a vertically disposed shaft 30 which extends through a bearing 30a to a suitable motor (not shown). It will be understood that the pump assembly is operative in the usual manner for pumping condensate from the bottom of the well chamber 11, by way of an intake 31, into an annular discharge passage 32 that extends upwardly through the casing sections 28 and 27. The upper casing 27 includes an outwardly flared por tion 27a connected by several webs 34 to an enlarged portion 27b having an annular flange 35, on which is formed a downwardly facing sealing surface 36 complernentary to the sealing surface 25. The casing section 27 is cored to provide a retrorse portion 32a of the pump discharge passage 32, which registers with the annular recess 26 in the conduit section, when the flanges 35 and 24 are secured together by studs 38. The portion 32a of the passage is formed between the portions 27a and 27b of the casing section 27, and divides the sealing surface 36 into inner and outer portions 36a and 36b which abut the respective inner and outer portions 25a and 25b of the sealing surface 25, all in the same plane. It will be evident that when inspection of the pump internal parts is desired, removal of studs 38 will enable withdrawal of the assembly 27, 28, 29, as a unit, from the more or less permanently installed conduit section 12.

It will thus be seen that a condensate pump of the pit type having removable internal elements and constructed according to the invention, may be provided with accurate combination seals in a single plane, between the conduit section 12 having the outflow and inlet pipe connections and the upper casing section 27 having the pump discharge passage, without necessitating the at-. tention to close tolerances heretofore required in the manufacture of a similar pump having multiplanar seals including an outer seal on one plane between the permanent and removable casing sections and a separate seal on another plane for preventing leakage between the pump suction and discharge passages. In addition, with the inlet and outlet pipe connections conveniently disposed on the single conduit section at substantially the same elevation, the overall height of the apparatus is effectively minimized.

While the invention has been shown in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.

What is claimed is:

1. In a pump apparatus, a vertically disposed outer casing structure enclosing a pump casing and having formed in the upper end thereof a lateral inlet passageway communicating with said pump casing, and a lateral outlet passageway; said outer casing structure including an annular flange portion having an upwardly facing sealing surface with an annular recess communicating with said outlet passageway and dividing said sealing surface into coplanar outer and inner portions; said pump casing including an inner casing section carry ing rotary pump means adapted to be removably mounted in said pump casing; said inner casing section including an annular flange portion with a downwardly facing sealing surface complementary to the first-named sealing surface; said pump casing having an annular discharge passage extending upwardly between said inner casing section and said pump casing and terminating in an annular port formed in said downwardly facing sealing surface for dividing the latter into coplanar outer and inner portions cooperative with those first-named; said port registering with said annular recess in the flange portion of said outer casing section, and said outer and inner portions of the upwardly facing sealing surface abutting the respective outer and inner portions of said downwardly facing sealing surface in a common plane.

2. In a pump apparatus, a vertically disposed generally tubular outer casing structure having formed therein a pump well, a lateral inlet passageway communicating with the upper end thereof, and a lateral outlet passageway disposed at substantially the same level; said outer casing structure including an annular flange por- 3, 7. tion having an upwardly facing sealing surface with an annular recess formed therein and communicating with said outlet passageway, said recess dividing said upwardly facing sealing surface into concentric outer and inner portions; anelongated inner-casing'At-ructure carrying-- rotary pump means adapted -to- 'bGrCQQJXiQHY' mounted in A said pump wellrsaid inner casingstructurejncluding.ani outwardly tflared upper portion itterminatirrgrin an :an-v nularaiflange-vwithi .a downwardly-facing sealing surface-' complementary :tothe =first-named sealing surface; said inner. casing having an annular discharge passage extend-.i ingithrough the. flaredupper portiom thereof; said dis charge passage being curved into ran annular port: formedin said' downwardly facing sealing surface-and registeringl withssaid annular recess in the flange-portionofsaidouter casing structure, said port: dividingsaid down-.. wardlyafacing surface into i outer and-inner concentric portions; land-means for :detaclrarblyclamping said outer casing flange portion-and said-inner casing flange-to gether, with said upwardly .facingtsealing surface-portions abutting the-respective downwardly facing sealing portions in a'cornmon plane.

3. In a pump apparatus, a vertically disposed generally tubular: outer casing structure comprising a downwardly extendingtubular well-sectionanda separate conduit section secured to the-upper end thereof; said conduitsection having formed therein a-lateralinlet passageway openinginto said -'well section and having an interior wall, and a lateral outlet .passagewaydis -w posed .onsubstantially the same-level vand :separated from said inlet passageway -by said wall; said rconduit section including an upper annular flange portion-having upwardly facing concentriciouter and inner sealing surfaces formed in -the same plane and an.angnlanrecess; formed 'therein between-said sealing surfaces. in communication with said outlet passageway; an elongated interior. casing structure including a pump portionadapted for coaxial dispositionin saidwell section; said interior. casingstructure includingan outwardly :extending annular' flange portion having coplanar,- concentrioouter 40 and inner downwardly facing sealing surfaces complemem: taryto and 'engageablewith 'thetfirst-named sealing surfaces, respectively; said interiorl-yimounted pump por-.

tion having a smaller outside diameter than the inner diameter--of-said-annularflanges; and an annular dis-' charge passage for said pump formed in said interior casing structure and extending through said flange portion thereof into communication with said annular recess in the flange portion of said outer casing structure at the juncture of said sealing-surfaces.

4. In a pump. base structure includingan outer conduit casing having a-centraldownwardly-extending well chamber,- and aconcentric outer recess; said conduit,- casi'n'g havingvinterior annular, wall separating saidwrecess from said well'chamber and terminating in anupwardly facing inner sealing surface; an outer annular fi nge encompassingg aid recessin the ndu t asi and terminating in an upwardly facing concentric outer sealing surface inthe-sameplanewithlsaid inner sealing surface; said conduit casing also having a lateral inlet passageway opening into said well chamber and a lateral outlet passageway-communicating withisaid iouter recess;- an interior casing section-removably mounted on the outer conduit casing and including atubular pump;

dischargeportion. extending i downwardly inmsaid well chamber -andi=an =upper flangeaportioni extending over satiric-flange on the conduit-casing; saidlflange portion: of. the interior easing section: having concentricouter andilinner downwardly .facingtsealing surfaces engage-iable withv the respective upwardly facing- .sealing surfaces of said conduit casing flange'along thecommonplane; an annular- .pump; discharge passage: formed in said tin-n teriorncasing :sect'ionzand ieXtendingroutwa-rdly from the. tubular portion --.thereof and-downwardly betweenwusaidt downwardly facing/sealing i surfaces: lintc. communication with said outer-recess of. theiconduit casing; and: means for securing-together saidsfiangeiportioniofthe interior: casing section and: said flange on the:conduitt,casing.

References Cited in .the fi lewofx this patent UNITED STATES. PATENTS Number Name- Date 1,079,682" Wintroath; Nov-25,1913 2,5 14,865, Hornschuch -a Iul'y 11, 1950a 

